I've been sitting here reading the posts and thinking. My pop told me as a young child "you should never give anything with intentions" Thats hard to sink in sometimes. Giving is self serving, you shouldn't want anything in return othr than the fact that you could give unselfishly. Hard to live by. We live every day giving to those we love expecting in return respect, love, undrstanding, when really all we need is knowing that we gave. I can't seem to do this I find myself "judging" as we all do. I challenge each of you to give to that one person that you just don't think is quilt worthy.

I have been reading this thread for a since yesterday and I got on my podium than and got back off..but.. this morning it hit me...its a shame we can't be as forgiving and generous and non judgemental to our family and friends as we can to people we never meet doing our charity quilts...whats the old saying....charity begins at home...you have no idea what the charity quilts you give are being used for...you shouldn't care what they are being used for in your loved ones homes..if you made it with love...I am not usually the type of woman to complain about things but I am amazed at what you all have said....we have all had someone in our family and friends who have misused a quilt (according to our prospective) but maybe not according to theirs...sharing it with their beloved pet may be their way of showing how much they love them...when my Lucy(8 year old bloodhound) was sick with cancer we used whatever we could to keep her warm and comfortable...when we got a new puppy I made her a quilt...I still have it...corner is chewed but its Beulahs mark she was here...maybe someday a new puppy will love it...I love quilting...I can't possibly keep every quilt I make..I would be out of room...but I love being generous and loving to my family and friends...I really don't care how they see fit to use it...my son will be receiving his over size king quilt this weekend..I did say I will never make another one this big...but I know my son has 3 children and a cat and a wife who is a bit of a slob...(I love her anyway)..he wanted a black and white quilt he saw at a quilt shop when he stopped in to see me...so I made it black white and red..but I put a black backing on it..so hopefully it won't show as many stains as the children help to break it in over the next several years..the kids sleep with them when they are sick..so I kept that in mind..stitching every stitch with love and thoughts of the future and what this quilt will see...again I won't be here forever but the quilt might make it longer than I ...I am not worthy of anything in my life that I have been so generously given..but all the same someone has given to me...so I generously and unjudgingly give back...again making a quilt is an act of love...love should be unconditional...ok again off my podium...I hope you all have a quilty day and that you are all blessed in your lifes..blessings

bearlea,
Well said

I'm so happy to see that so many of you will be giving quilts this year to the child molester across town, and the drug dealer that hangs out near our local schools. Its heart warming to know that some of us don't judge like me.

I think one of the things most of us quilters can't come to terms with is that someone WOULDN'T love and cherish a quilt as much as we do. But some don't. To some, it's really just a common blanket, not a statement of our love. Just think of all the stuff at church bazaars that you wouldn't want in your home. I won't mention anything, because I'm sure I'd offend someone. But they were lovely to someone, and I'm sure they thought their craft would be chersihed by whomever they gave it to. My dad used to say "there's no accounting for taste!" So, I expect the tough part is deciding who wants a blanket and who wants a quilt. And not to be appalled that someone only wants a blanket.

Bearlea: I agree and stated in my post that a gift is given and once it's out of our hands that's it. My complaint and I think others feel the same, after a certain age (say 21) everyone should know the amount of work that a hand made object (knitted, crocheted, sewn) has in it. My DIL is 35-she's seen me quilting yet when the dog threw up she grabbed the quilt I made and threw it over the area on the rug with puke on it. Wouldn't you be a little hurt and more than a little angry?? Aren't paper towels invented for that?? I also saw her use a quilt her grandmother made to line the back seat of her car so the kids wouldn't get mud on the seat after soccer practice. Is this someone you would make another quilt for?? If so, bless you, you are more forgiving than I am.
I make many charity quilts and many qults for children and they are used for whatever purpose. I expect more from adults. I don't think it's fair to "look down" on us that feel our quilts deserve more respect than the car upholstery.

I found myself in this situation just in the past 3 months. I made a king size quilt for my son and his wife. Posted pictures of it on facebook. A guy who grew up and went to high school with our son soon said "I want a quilt". Welll, his Mom had just passed away. I didn't have the heart to say no to him. So I made him a deal. He wanted a "messy" quilt, meaning a scrappy quilt. I knew I had plenty of scraps in my stash to make him a large "messy" quilt. So I told him that I would make him a quilt because he has been like another one of our kids. But since hubby and I are now seniors living on a fixed income I don't have much ready cash to spend on having a quilt quilted. So he is going to pay for having it quilted. It is in the making right now...a "messy" log cabin. He was perfectly willing to pay the $150 or whatever to have it quilted. So I believe he is worthy of the work I am putting into this. By the way I have the 64 blocks done. Just have to figure how I am going to lay it out and then sew it together.

Oh my

Application question:
"Do you promise to love, honor, and cherish this quilt 'til death do you part?"
Well, it's almost that personal!

I love that Seinfeld episode, but then I love most of them. I determine quilt-worthy by the aksing myself a similar question. Is this person "friend" worthy? Since everyone one I ever made a quilt for, including the kids and vets I have never met, is friend worthy, then I only hope I make them smile with my quilt.

Of course, if your cat uses it for a litter box, just please don't let me know!!!! :wink: